Knitting-machine



w. H. SWARTS AND 0. B. RICHARDS.

KNITTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29.1918.

1,327,122, Patented Jan. 6, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

HI H m Ill 1 inwm UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM"H; SWARTZANDOSCAR B. RICHARDS, OF YORK, SYLVANIA, ASSIGNORS TO GENERAL" MACI-IINEWORKS, OF YORK, PENNSYLVANIA.

KNITTING-MACHINE:

Application filedJune 29, 1918.

To aZZ'wiwm it may concern:

Beit known that we, WILLIAM H. SWARTZ and OSCAR B. RICHARDS, citizens of the United States, residing at York, in the county of York andState of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Knitting-Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference beinghad therein to the accompanying drawin s.

This invention relates to improvements in knitting machines, and particularly to that type disclosed in U. S. patent to Ruth, No. 715,151, issued December 2, 1902.

It, isto be understood that in the art to which our invention relates,it is a common practice to employ two independent devices involving two separate and independent movements, actuated by two independent sources, to adjust the needles for causing the character of the stitches to be changed.

The object of our invention is the con struction of a simple and eflicient device, which will be operated from the same source as the other, or companion, device usually employedin an old structure known to the art, for obtaining the adjustment of the needles by a simple, single lever and link adjustment hereinafter specifically described.

With this and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel constructions, combinations and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter fully. described and claimed.

In thedrawings:

Figure 1 is a view,in side elevation, of a knittingmachine, showing our improved device assembled therewith.

Fig. 2v is a sectional view taken on the line 22, Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows, and showing particularly our improved device, while Ilig. 3 is a view, in side elevation, of the same.

Fig. a is a perspective view of a cam collar, or eccentric forming part of our inven- 4 tion.

Fig, 7 is a bottom. plan'view' of'the dial cap.

Specification of Letters Patent:

Serial No. 242,580;

There are a number of devices known to theart used to press thecam-post 1 down, for example,suchas thatshown in theU. S. Patent No.,715,154,to G. W. Ruth, granted: December 2,1902) and thuslower the; top ends of the needles 2 during the critical period of knitting, but all of these old. devices are actuated and controlled by a lever that is a part of a. device'to operate campost 1, and which is eliminated by our improved, device.

Our device comprises the primary camlink 3, and the auxiliary link at pivotally connected by means of bolt 5, the outer end 6 of link tbeing adapted to engage the top of the cam-post 1.

Theouter link 41 is of a bellcrank type, and the linkt is pivotally mounted, at 7, upon a post 8 of the plate 9, which plate 9 is suitably secured to the base 10 of the knitting machine. i

The inner end of the cam-link 3 is provided with. an annular ring 11, which annular ringll fitsover the cam-extension l2=of the, cam-collar 13.

The vertical rotary post or shaft 14 car rise the [canrcollar 13, and by means of a set-screw or fastening, member 15, the camcollar 13 issecured in an adjusted position upon the vertical rotary post or shaft 1 1.

Fixedly secured to shaft 14 is an operating lever 16, and by swinging the operating lever in tl e are of a circle, thecam-extension 12 of the cam-collar 13 will be rotated within the ring 11 and cause a horizontal sliding movement of the cam-link 3 for swinging the bell-crank link 1, for moving the outer end 6 of said link 1 in a vertical plane with respect tothe cam-post 1.

The operation of the complete device is as follows:

The lever 16is thrown or swung, causing the post or shaft-.1 1 to revolve or turn only a portion of the circle (approximately oneeighth), and this slight movement of the cam or eccentric 13 causes the links or arms 3 and to move forward, as indicated by dotted lines, Fig. 3, which movement results in the end 6 of the bell crank link 4 to press on the head 1, thus lowering the needles until the critical knitting stage (welt) is passed,

It is to be understood that the movement of thelever 16'is the beginning of the entire movement, whichcauseslthe knitting of the welt. 7 All other old devices to lower the Patented Jan. 6, 1920;

needles, operated by two separate devices in place of lever 16, are uncertain, because, should either one lever or device get out of order, and refuse to join in the operation with its companion device at the critical time, when the apparatus controlled by lever 16 starts to make the welt, then the welt knitting'will proceed without its ally (the other device) and the result will be disastrous.

With our invention, both devices-are actuated by the samelever 16, that is, besides the link device constituted by links 3 and 1, a link 17 (Fig. 1) is attached to and near the upper end of the post or shaft 14: and operates thedevice that controls the other set of needles of the machine, and if said lever 16 V is operated at all, then both of the devices,

' portion of the'knitted fabric that is thicker connected to the post or shaft 14, will proceed to work simultaneously, and if the said lever fails to encounter the member that should operate it, then neither device can start start working, and there will be no disaster at all, the only result will be no welt-no torn yarn or broken needles, or great loss of time necessary to repair the same. Referring to Fig. 5, when the plain portion of the article or garment has been knitted, such for instance, as the sleeve,

the tops or hooks of the cylinder needles always stand in a line shaped as at 18. This V-shapedarrangement. 18 is caused by the butts 19 of the needlesriding under the cam 20, which cam 20 is fastened by screws 20 to the vertically-movable cam post 1. It is desired to lengthen the stitch, as the trade terms it, at the time the welt, or any other or heavier than the body or plain portion, is being knit, because by so lengthening the stitch more space is secured between the ends, or hooks, or the horizontal dial needles, and the vertical cylinder needles, thus allowing the thick portion (already knitted) to pass between all the hooks of the dial and cylinder needles without breaking I the needles.

When the cam 20' is depressed, the hooks of needles follow a line as at 21, Fig. 5, and the butts of some of the needles are depressed as at line'22 Referring to Fig. 7, the dial cap 20", and its attendant parts, is to actuate the needles offthe dial. During the knitting of the plain portion of the fabric, the butts of the dial needles travel in the groove 23 in the direction of the arrows, and the shape of this When shaft 14 is slightly rotated, this swinging cam 25 is moved to a posit on shown by dotted line 26 (Fig. 7), changing the shape of groove 23 to that shown by dotted line 23 and thus causing the ends on hooks of needles to assume a line as at 2'1 (dotted), and while at this position all the machines (as it iswell known to the trade) will knit welts only until swinging cam 25 is brought back-to its former position as shown by solidflines (Fig. 7), when plain ribbed fabric will be knitted again.

Now, to sum the matter up briefly, when shaft let is rotated slightly, the attached link 17 moves cam 25, causing its attendant dial needles to begin to knit the welt, the bellcrank link a and cam-link 3 are actuated simultaneously causing the end 6 to depress with a support, of'a rotatable'shaft mounted upon said support, a needleactuating, swing ng cam earned by said support, means connecting said shaft and cam, a

needle: actuating, vertically movable cam carried'by said support, and a bell-crank and eccentric link device mounted upon said support and cooperating with means assembled with the rotatable shaft and the Vertically-movable cam for operating the vertically'movable cam when said shaft is rotated, whereby both cams are simultaneously actuated.

2. In aknitting machine, the'combination with a support, of a rotatable shaft mounted upon said support, a needle-actuating,

swinging cam carriedby said support, means connecting? said shaft and cam, a verticallymovable cam post mounted upon said support, a' needle-actuating cam secured to said post, an eccentric link mounted upon said rotatable shaft, an eccentric collar mounted upon said shaft and having a portion positioned within said eccentric link, a bellcrank link pivotally mounted upon said support and connected to said eccentric link, and said bell-crank link having a portion overhanging the cam post, whereby, when the rotatable shaft is operated, the bellcrank link will be operated for depressing said cam post.

In testimony whereof we hereunto affix our signatures.

WILLIAM H. SWARTZ. OSCAR B. RICHARDS. 

